


The Meeting and The Jailbreak

by kassandra_divina_trevelyan



Series: The Andromeda Rewrites [1]
Category: Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, First Meetings, Flirting, Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-27
Updated: 2019-07-27
Packaged: 2020-07-22 20:23:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,082
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19994374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kassandra_divina_trevelyan/pseuds/kassandra_divina_trevelyan
Summary: Esme Ryder doesn't know what to expect when she shows up on Kadara for a meeting with a Resistance contact. She doesn't expect to break a supposed traitor free from prison. She doesn't expect the atmosphere of the planet and its inhabitants. Most of all, Esme couldn't anticipate the charming smuggler known as Reyes Vidal and his uncanny way of taking over her thoughts.(Mostly canon-compliant with little divergences for more Reyes content)





	The Meeting and The Jailbreak

**Author's Note:**

> Follow me on Tumblr @queen-among-writers  
> Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3Y9QFtVWHb0t6tjeCfkMLJ

Stepping down the ramp of the Tempest onto the dock of Kadara Port, Esme Ryder readied herself for a potentially hostile environment as she headed for a bar known as Kralla’s Song. She had a meeting planned with a contact from the Angaran Resistance, known by the name Shena, who could inform her about Vehn Terev. Esme knew that in order for the Andromeda Initiative to succeed, they would need alliances and that Angaran people were the best starting point. Therefore, Esme would curry favor with them by lending her time, and her latest mission was centered around Vehn Terev.

They docked on Kadara late last night and spent the night on the Tempest, but Esme planned to head out early in the morning. The moment the first rays broke through the darkness, Esme stirred with an alarm from SAM and prepared for her meeting. This was their first excursion to Kadara and Esme heard plenty about it from those on the Nexus, who had never been to the planet. Esme marched through the port and she shut down any whispers or stares with her fierce resting glower and powerful stride. With SAM holding the coordinates of Kralla’s Song, Esme was able to easily find the bar and slip inside. The bar was quiet and winding down from the peak hours during early in the morning. There still seemed to be patrons, heavily drunk and still going strong alike, milling about. Esme sidled up to the bar and that’s where she decided to wait for Shena.

“Hey!” The bartender, an Asari woman, hollered at an armored krogan who edged away from the bar and Esme assumed there was a payment dispute brewing between the two. She faced away from the two arguing aliens but opted to sneak glances in her peripheral vision while she mainly focused on the door. She arrived earlier than the established meeting time for a reason. 

“Piss off.” The krogan waved the bartender off dismissively, but she wouldn’t let him leave without paying. No one skimped her of credits in her bar. 

“You order, you pay.” The bartender insisted, looking the pirate dead in the eye as she waited for him to cough up the credits he owed for his tab. The pirate snarled at her before turning around and stepping closer to intimidate her. 

“I said-” The krogan growled but the bartender embedded a knife straight into the bar counter with a menacing glare directed at the krogan. He grumbled, forking over the credits owed before ditching the bar. Esme glanced back down at her feet and wondered if all of Kadara was this seedy. She heard rumors about its reputation as a hub of criminals, exiles, and other particularly unsavory folks. Esme wanted to make that decision on her own without the whispers of those living on the Nexus, especially the leadership, clouding her judgment. She adjusted her ponytail a little tighter on her head and blew away a stray brunette strand of hair out of her eyes. Turning her head toward the entrance of the bar, Esme instantly noticed a man approaching the bar with his eyes set on her. She observed his tanned skin, handsome features, and dark hair but it was his eyes that captivated her attention, an amber color that reminded Esme of honey from her distant Milky Way life. Those eyes that studied her from afar and anchored onto her as he approached the bar, a foot or two away from her.

“You like you’re waiting for someone.” The stranger remarked to Esme while leaning against the bar comfortably, signaling the bartender for a drink with a nod of his head. The bartender rushed over with two drinks and slammed them down in front of him. The stranger seemed unfazed by the aggressive response and picked both drinks up. He turned and offered one to Esme, wordlessly. Esme’s eyes flickered down to the drink and she managed a small smirk. 

“I’ve got time for a drink.” Esme accepted as she curled her fingers around the glass to where they brushed across the stranger’s. The stranger nodded at her with respect and watched Esme grasp the cup of liquor. Esme and the stranger clinked their glasses together in a silent cheer before downing their beverages easily. Esme gulped down the contents of her glass, a sweet-tasting liquor she believed to be some type of rum, and pulled the glass away from her lips. The stranger slammed his down on the counter as he finished.

“Shena, but you can call me Reyes.” The stranger introduced himself and offered his hand to Esme for a handshake. Esme blinked for a second in astonishment before she clasped his hand with hers in a firm grip. Esme was hardly expecting another human… a handsome human man to be her contact for the Angaran resistance. Reyes managed a slight grin at Esme’s unhidden surprise; she wouldn’t be the first to not guess he was a human instead of an Angaran. “I hate codenames.”

“I was expecting someone more… Angaran.” Esme replied, finally taking in his accent for the first time. She glanced off to the side when she overheard him chuckle, causing a slight shiver. Esme thought about introducing herself and wondered if that was redundant since he probably knew who she was. Reyes approached her in the bar after all.

“The Resistance pays me to supply information—among other things.” Reyes remarked and Esme caught on to his alluded message, smuggled into the subtext of his words. Every organization needed their members with certain specialties after all. 

“So, you’re a smuggler?” Esme inquired with an arched brow and she glanced at Reyes in a new light. Reyes didn’t answer Esme, but rather he tilted his head toward the railing a few feet away. Esme understood his unspoken request and stepped back from the bar with him, the two of them veering over railing with the Kadaran view. Esme stared out at the sunrise and skyline with a softness in her eyes that Reyes spotted before it vanished. Reyes leaned against the railing and Esme did the same.

“Your man, Vehn Terev, was arrested by Sloane Kelly, leader of the Outcasts. Word spread about what he did to Moshae Sjefa. The people are calling for his execution and Sloane… she’s a woman of the people.” Reyes explained… and was that sarcasm Esme detected in his voice? Esme huffed at the morally righteous attitude she’s heard about Sloane. That woman was only invested in one thing—power.

“Dress it up however you want. She’s a criminal.” Esme retorted, not sure where Reyes stood on the issue since he seemed to be a neutral third-party with monetary ties to the Resistance rather than complete investment in their mission. Esme figured that plenty of people across the galaxy were disillusioned by the promises of various organizations busy vying for power in the new frontier priested in the expansion of Andromeda. 

“You work for the Initiative. Sloane was part of the uprising on the Nexus. I doubt she’ll give Vehn up easily.” Reyes stated, knowing for a fact that Sloane was extremely stubborn and would most likely not budge on the issue of Vehn Terev. Esme stared into his amber eyes with momentary distraction at how bright the color was, reminding her of golden honey once again. Esme shook her head; she wouldn’t take no for an answer with Sloane.

“I’m taking him—with or without her permission.” Esme declared unabashedly, all while staring out at the view. Her eyes narrowed; that information she needed was far more important than whatever statement Sloane planned to make and capitalize on from Vehn’s execution. A husky chuckle escaped Reyes and that drew Esme’s attention back to him, still standing beside her and admiring her features discreetly. Of all the rumors he heard about the Pathfinder, none accurately portrayed how beautiful she was.

“We’re going to be friends, you and I.” Reyes declared between another chuckle at Esme’s fierce determination; it was quite admirable. However, Reyes knew Sloane would not give Vehn up, especially with her connections to the Initiative. That’s why he was there to help. “There might be another way to get to Vehn. You work Sloane. I’ll talk to the Resistance.” Reyes propped himself against the railing with his elbow to face Esme before walking toward the front door of Kralla’s Song. Esme blinked for a second, realizing that Reyes was walking away without some key information… like what to do if Sloane refused to budge on releasing Vehn. Turning on her heel, Esme watched Reyes sauntering away.

“How do I contact you if things go south?” Esme questioned, making Reyes stop. He glanced back over to Esme with a smirk on his lips before he winked at her. Reyes turned toward the door and strode away with confidence, leaving behind a startled Esme. Did Reyes just wink at her? Biting down on her lip to keep back a smile, Esme started walking away when she heard the bartender bark at her.

“Hey! You got to pay!” The bartender demanded and Esme glanced over at her, pulling out her omni-tool to transfer some credits for the drinks Reyes ordered. Esme shrugged, not heavily fazed by the loss of credits.

“Keep the change,” Esme remarked as she strolled away, missing the look that the bartender wore from her comment.

“Always do.” The bartender murmured and she cleaned up the spot where Esme and Reyes were. Esme moved past patrons of Kralla’s Song nimbly and stepped out of the darkness of the bar and into the marketplace. She squinted her eyes for a second to adjust to the brightness from the sun rising in the sky and sighed, knowing she should find Sloane. As Esme pushed her hand away from her face and walked through the market place, she swore she heard someone calling her name but shrugged it off the first couple times. After the third time, Esme glanced around when she clearly heard it.

“Pathfinder, there you are!” Esme halted when she heard the voice of Lt. Cora Harper, her second in command and her father’s former second as well when he was Pathfinder. Esme spotted Cora walking up to her with Liam, another member of their crew, in tow. Both were in casual attire while Esme kept one of her pistols on her for protection, tucked away in her jacket. 

“Cora! Liam! I didn’t know you guys were in Kadara… I kind of thought you were still sleeping on the Tempest.” Esme declared, unsure of what they were doing in the marketplace. When they docked, Esme allowed her crew to roam as they pleased so long as they kept their comms open for instances of emergency or notification of when they planned to depart. Upon docking in Kadara, Esme offered the option to the crew but Cora seemed noticeably uninterested in mingling with those on Kadara and Liam claimed he was preoccupied with an assignment. So, Esme didn’t expect to see them while dealing with business. She certainly didn’t expect them out and about at this hour.

“Nah, we came down to explore.” Liam explained when he noticed how Esme’s face, normally peachy, was a bright red around the cheeks. He started to reach out to feel for a fever but stopped himself from doing so with Cora there. Lately, he felt quite odd around Esme and hadn’t figured out what changed between the two. Maybe it was because she walked on him and Jaal, working on the Tempest shirtless. Whatever it was, he felt a dynamic shift between him and Esme. “Uh, Ryder? Your face is a little red. You good?”

“Oh yeah! Perfectly fine!” Esme coughed, noticing that her voice jumped an octave. She thought about Reyes’ shooting her that damn wink as he sauntered away. She hardly realized that the flirtatious personality of Reyes made her fluster. It had been a while since she encountered such flirting since most people were concerned about determining viable planets. Esme ignored her accelerated heartbeat and focused back on topic at hand, “The inside of Kralla’s Song was a little warm. Anyways, I meant with the contact from the Angaran Resistance, Shena. His name is actually Reyes. He is reaching out to his Resistance contacts for some assistance while I have the unfortunate honor of negotiating with Sloane Kelly for Vehn Terev’s release to the Resistance.”

“Sloane Kelly? As in the leader of the Exiles and the architect behind the uprising on the Nexus, Sloane Kelly?” Liam questioned in shock and wide eyes. He knew that he should be asking about the meeting with this Reyes character, but he was more stuck on the fact that Esme planned to stare down Sloane Kelly. Sloane was reviled by the Nexus leadership and a decent faction of those on the Nexus and Esme was the Initiative’s new poster child, which only spelled out a disaster of a negotiation. 

“The same.” Esme confirmed with a grimace and she fidgeted with her omni-tool to make sure she had the coordinates at the ready. She glanced up to the concerned faces of Liam and Cora at the thought of a negotiation with Sloane, who was ruthless and possibly unpredictable. “I know where she is and I plan to argue for Vehn’s transfer into our custody. It’s a long shot but one worth attempting.” Esme remarked and Cora clapped her on the shoulder.

“You need back up?” Cora questioned, seemingly ready to arm herself and march down with Esme to Sloane. Esme shook her head, knowing she could handle it.

“No, I’ve got it. I’ll meet you back on the ship.” Esme reassured them before she sharply turned on her heel and continued toward the Outcasts HQ, where Sloane would most likely be. She arrived outside an unassuming building but SAM chimed in affirmation that she was in the right place. Esme was ready to meet Sloane. Stepping through the open doors, Esme moved down and through the halls until she reached a doorway with two, armed krogan guards protecting it. That, she assumed, was where Sloane was. Esme walked straight up to the door, which caught the guards’ attention. 

“Keep moving!” One of the guards raised his weapon at Esme to make her nervous and leave, but she planted in her spot and quirked her brow. Leveling a gun at her was the least terrifying thing she’s encountered in a long while. When the krogans realized Esme would not leave, they surged forward to escort her to Sloane. They opened the door to Sloane’s chamber with one guard leading the way and another flanking the end, leaving Esme stuck in the middle of them. She felt the muzzle of the guard’s rifle press into her back, against her spine, and managed to keep her cool. She was less composed when the guard behind her gave her a shove, even though she wasn’t dragging her feet. Esme glared at him and growled under her breath. She could easily disarm that guard within seconds and blow out both his knee caps before he or anyone else realized what she had done. The last thing she needed was a shoot-out in the lion’s den Esme walked herself into, but man was it tempting to tell the guard to shove it. Instead, Esme fixated ahead on the woman she assumed was Sloane Kelly, leaning back in a chair that looked more like a throne and making adjustments to the holographic data screen resting in front of her. From where Esme stood, the images appeared to be a map of some kind.

“Focus defenses here and here. The kett have been quiet for too long.” Sloane instructed and the armed turian next to her nodded, seemingly her second in command. Sloane waved the screen away with a flick of her wrist and noticed the addition of Esme’s presence to the room. She heard that the human Pathfinder arrived in Kadara Port the night before and Sloane wondered what she could possibly have the gall to want from her. Just to stick it to the Initiative, Sloane should consider putting a bullet in the Pathfinder. She leaned forward to study Esme with her brown and blue eyes. She sneered at Esme’s unimpressed demeanor, “What?”

“That’s a quite the throne. Should I bow? Kiss your ring?” Esme inquired smugly and she gradually allowed a smirk to rise up on her lips. She came to the conclusion that Sloane was a woman with some narcissistic tendencies and a power-hungry personality, which she would use against her. Sloane’s face contorting in rage demonstrated that Esme’s plan to win was already working.

“Very funny.” Sloane snipped at Esme before regaining her composure. People avoided angering her for her temper, but the Pathfinder didn’t flinch. In fact, Esme goaded her for a reaction and Sloane needed to keep Esme from getting under her skin. She was in control here, not Esme. Sloane leaned back in her seat. “So, what brings a Pathfinder to our humble port?”

“Vehn Terev. Name ring any bells?” Esme questioned and Sloane shifted in her seat. What did the Initiative want with Vehn Terev, awaiting his execution.

“What’s he to you? And don’t lie to me.” Sloane demanded with a sharp glare directed at Esme. Crossing her arms over her chest, Esme resisted the urge to laugh at Sloane attempting to intimidate her. If Esme wanted, Sloane would have no idea of when she was lying to her and there would be nothing she could do about it. But she would give Sloane a little something.

“I need him so I can infiltrate a kett flagship. You’ve obviously got no love for the kett. I’m doing you a favor.” Esme disclosed and she studied Sloane’s expression harden momentarily before returning to her previous expression. Esme knew that Sloane could see that she held bargaining power and that Esme wouldn’t grovel for Sloane’s help; she wasn’t the groveling type. 

“Kadara is an Angaran port. They want Vehn dead and I want to keep them happy.” Sloane replied sternly and Esme barely kept herself from rolling her eyes. Sloane was not the type for diplomacy as her track record showed more of the ‘my way or the highway mentality’ when she confronted anyone who dared challenge her. Sloane’s real worry was the Collective gaining enough traction to usurp her from her position of power, so she needed the support of the locals to keep an insurgency at bay. 

“This is bigger than local politics.” Esme pointed out and called Sloane out for exactly what she was doing this for. Sloane growled at Esme, who stared her down without flinching. 

“You don’t need Vehn—you need his intel. Talk to him before I put his head on a spike.” Sloane agreed, which was far more lenient than she initially assumed she would assent to. Esme scowled at Sloane, who seemed desperate for the execution more than the serving of justice. You know, it would be such a shame if Vehn somehow escaped, Esme thought to herself.

“Vehn should be judged by the Resistance—not you.” Esme declared finally and that seemed to snap whatever of Sloane’s temper she still held back. She glared at Esme and her fists curled up for a second before she remembered that she was in charge here. Esme nearly grinned; she got under Sloane’s skin.

“I don’t have time for a morality debate. Dismissed.” Sloane droned on in a mocking fashion and waved Esme off like she was her boss. Esme didn’t answer to Sloane and she would be sure to learn that from this point on. 

“Your Highness,” Esme declared as she gave Sloane a mocking bow. The glimmer in her eyes told Sloane that she better watch her back, but Sloane missed the warning as she fumed over the shit-eating grin Esme wore on her ruby red lips. Turning on her heel without another word, Esme sauntered from the room and out of the Outcasts HQ without needing an escort out. Stepping back into the market, Esme walked past another bar when she saw Reyes. She approached him and hoped he got in contact with his Resistance contacts, knowing she could use a little something to free Vehn Terev and piss off Sloane.

“Have a nice chat?” Reyes inquired with his arms crossed over his chest, his amber eyes twinkling in mischievous amusement. He already had a good idea of how the interaction went with Sloane as he was no stranger to her abrasive personality. Sloane ruled Kadara with an iron fist but Esme seemed like the kind of woman, to Reyes, who could throw Sloane off-balance and keep her on her toes.

“I think she likes me.” Esme remarked cheekily, replaying how she messed with Sloane at every turn. Reyes knew the subtext of her words and nodded, he expected as much. Sloane would rather eat her beloved pistol than cow down to someone else’s demands or admit her wrongdoings. 

“Don’t worry, I found a workaround.” Reyes chuckled, not expecting the Pathfinder to be such a lively personality with a snarky attitude sharp enough to cut. Reyes quite liked that. Esme joined in his bemusement with a smile of her own.

“Let me guess, it comes with strings attached?” Esme guessed, fully expecting Reyes to present more demands or hoops for Esme to leap through on behalf of the Resistance. However, Reyes shook his head. 

“Not any new ones. Remember, Evfra wants Vehn alive, so when you get inside, give him this.” Reyes stepped closer to Esme to obscure the view of her while he pressed something into Esme’s hands. He missed the slight hitch of Esme’s breath as he stepped back. Esme glanced down to see a small mechanical device in her hands. She had no clue what it would do and she decided plausible deniability seemed like a smart contingency plan, but curiosity trumped all else. Esme glanced up to Reyes, silently inquiring as to what purpose the object in her hands served. “That’ll eat through whatever Sloane’s holding him with and it can’t be traced back to us. A resistance agent will be waiting to pick Vehn up.”

“What if he makes a run for it?” Esme inquired, wanting to be prepared for the success of her information gathering and the Resistance’s regaining Vehn Terev for a proper trial and judgment, unlike Sloane’s interpretation of justice by ramming his decapitated head on a spike. 

“It’s covered. You just focus on… whatever it is you need from Vehn. There’s a maintenance shaft around the corner. Sending the access code to your omni-tool. That’ll get you inside. You should be able to handle the rest.” Reyes suavely input the coordinates Esme needed to find Vehn Terev and hopefully assist him in escaping from jail. He glanced back up to see Esme’s raised brow and knowing smirk.

“There’s still the matter of the bill you left me with.” Esme remarked, reminding him of how he left the bar and her with the payment for the drinks he ordered.

“I’m usually the model gentleman.” Reyes proclaimed, pressing his hand to his chest dramatically and seemingly in disbelief. However, Esme didn’t believe that for a second.

“Oh? I don’t believe you.” Esme remarked while placing her hands on her hips. Only knowing him for him for less than an hour, Esme could already tell that Reyes was trouble but the kind she could never stay away from. Besides, he was helping her and the Initiative underneath Sloane’s nose when she would make his life miserable if she knew.

“…because I’m lying.” Reyes instantly and casually replied, causing Esme to nearly snort. Reyes caught Esme’s bemusement and he nodded, “When you’re done, come to Tartarus. First round’s on me, I promise.” Reyes assured Esme and before she could accept his offer, Reyes walked off. Esme nodded with a breath, seeing that Reyes might be the type who liked to be chased. Little did he know that Esme could keep up with the chase. Cracking her neck, Esme moved out of the bar and slipped around the corner to find the maintenance shaft Reyes informed her about, right where he said it would be. Using SAM’s capabilities, Esme ducked down into the shaft and walked through the tunnels until she came upon a cell where an Angaran, who she assumed was Vehn Terev, sat with his head down.

“What do you want?” Vehn questioned like he wasn’t the one stuck behind the bars of a jail cell and awaiting his execution, which grated on Esme’s nerves. 

“The Archon’s ship. Where is it?” Esme questioned and her voice, sharp and commanding, made Vehn survey her from his seated position a little longer. He had no clue who she was but Vehn had no plans to answer to one of Sloane’s lackeys.

“This a new interrogation tactic? Sloane’s getting lazy.” Vehn mused uninterestedly and glanced back down at his lap. Esme scoffed and crossed her arms over her chest at his dismissal of her.

“I’m not with Sloane. Evfra sent me. Answer my questions and I can get you back to the Resistance.” Esme promisingly offered and Vehn considered her words for a second, thinking about the implications. He shook his head and glanced at the wall of his cell. 

“So, I’m trading on cell for another?” Vehn questioned and Esme really didn’t want to play the pity game with the traitor.

“This is what happens when you make deals with the bad guy.” Esme responded firmly but she edged closer to the bars, knowing what might get through to Vehn to give her the information. “Or stay here. Sloane’s sharpening up a spike just for your head.”

“I’d rather be miserable than kaekyn food.” Vehn sighed, realizing that Esme had a point. Glad that Vehn seemed open to cooperating with her now, stalked a little closer to the bars and she would capitalize on his newfound alignment to her side.

“-Which brings us back to the Archon’s ship. Where is it?” Esme demanded an answer and Vehn rose from his seat and turned to Esme. She was his ticket out of here and he needed to comply to earn his freedom back to the Resistance.

“I never saw it. Got my orders from a kett transponder. But you could use its frequency to triangulate the Archon’s location.” Vehn revealed and speculated, which made Esme quite pleased. That fact helped her and her crew track down the Archon much easier than a simple description of where it last was. 

“Do you still have it?” Esme questioned, hoping she wouldn’t have to sneak around the Outcasts’ HQ in search of the transponder. She knew she would likely encounter a gunfight or two, and she would like to avoid those until she had her companions along. 

“I buried it before I was arrested. Should still be outside the city.” Vehn admitted and Esme, after glancing around for prying eyes, pressed the device into Vehn’s hands. She hoped he knew how to use it because she certainly didn’t. She assumed it was Angaran tech.

“This is your way out of here. A Resistance contact will be waiting.” Esme informed before she started to walk down the way she came, her business with Vehn complete. She could now head back to the Resistance with more leverage to accomplish their mutual goals of fighting the kett. As she walked away, she heard the rattle of the cell door and Vehn’s voice call out to her.

“Don’t you want to know why I did it? Why I betrayed the Moshae?” Vehn called out and Esme stopped in her spot. She bit down on her lip and a small part of her did wonder why he did such a thing to betray his people. Esme could hardly see how anyone would rationalize working with the kett after all the dehumanizing things the kett have done, especially to the Angara.

“Enlighten me.” Esme remarked as she turned around and Vehn found himself faced with the fiery eyes of the Pathfinder, who seemed quite eager to hear what motivated him to betray his people in such a manner as handing over one of their most beloved figures to a group of hostile aliens to experiment on and turn them into the monstrous kett.

“We’re losing the war against the kett. And still, Evfra puts my brothers and sisters in danger to protect a useless old woman.” Vehn explained but Esme cut him off with a raise of her hand and narrowing of her eyes.

“So, you took things into your own hands.” Esme snarled and she would describe the action of Vehn as cowardice rather than any form of bravery. Giving the Moshae up to be experimented on was not his call to make, ever.

“I made the call he wouldn’t. The Archon only wanted the Moshae. I thought if I gave her up…I didn’t know what the kett were doing to my people. I did what I thought was right and I’ll accept the consequences.” Vehn defended himself and Esme could not believe he still considered himself to not be completely guilty because of his personal opinion that Evfra should cave in not being heeded. Esme shook her head as she walked away, silently conflicted. She knew the Resistance would handle Vehn and that she was ruining Sloane’s sadistic pleasure in mounting another head on a pike as her favorite fear tactic. Those were the bright side to this whole situation.

Walking out of the maintenance shaft for the second time, Esme emerged with a knowing smirk knowing that she threw a wrench into Sloane’s plans. Esme reveled in the satisfaction and flicked her ponytail over her shoulder with a snap of her head as she moved through the market back toward her ship. Her sharp eyes scanned cross the market and caught sight of Reyes leaning against a stall, spotting his face from the shadows. Reyes grinned when he spotted Esme’s look of triumph glowing in her eyes like the reignited embers of a fire. He found himself quite intrigued by Esme. Esme watched as Reyes send a wink her way and disappeared into the shadows of the Kadaran market, making her cheeks flush. All Esme knew is that she would be collecting on that promise for drinks soon enough.


End file.
